Aladtec's EMS Manager System Celebrates 10 Years

November 27, 2012—MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL, MN—Many successful companies “put the cart before the horse” in the sense that they develop something before the technology, or service, becomes mainstream. EMS Manager, an online employee scheduling system, was launched back in the day when software was typically sold in a box, to be installed on a single computer, and used by a single person.

When EMS Manager was first made available to customers in December 2002, creators Dave Feyereisen and Leo Langlois hadn’t heard of the term “SaaS” or “The Cloud,” they were simply asked to create a website for a local ambulance service, that would feature an interactive employee schedule. That request not only launched EMS Manager, but also a new company for the developers, Aladtec, Inc.

“We developed EMS Manager exclusively for online use back in 2002, at the time it was a struggle to find agencies that had internet access. It was a tough road for a number of years ... but we were confident the web application model would succeed once public understanding caught up to the technology,” shares David Feyereisen, co-founder and CEO at Aladtec.

The term SaaS was coined by The Software & Information Industry Association (SIAA) in 2000 and defined as a service model, application or service that is deployed from a centralized data center across a network that provides access and use based upon a recurring fee. In other words, a customer accesses the application, such as EMS Manager from a central provider—in this case Aladtec—and pays a subscription fee to use the software.

Because SaaS products are subscription-based, they are much more budget friendly with a monthly or annual fee versus a large upfront capital investment. There is no need for an in-house server, additional hardware or associated IT expenses. Accessibility is also a major advantage; EMS Manager, and other SaaS products, are accessible 24/7/365 from any computer with Internet access.

“The pricing structure played a role in choosing an Aladtec product, as did the turnkey deployment. Recognizing the direction of wireless technology, we also wanted a solution that could be used with smartphones and other mobile devices," indicates Eric Gerhardt, administrative manager, San Diego County Fire Authority, San Diego, California.

Now, a decade after EMS Manager was first introduced, the terms “SaaS” and “Web app” are common nomenclature. There are hundreds of subscription based SaaS products available to businesses, and people have become very comfortable using web apps like Gmail and Facebook for personal use.

The future is very bright for web apps, the SaaS business model and companies like Aladtec, who utilize this technology to help their customers cut costs and increase productivity. “Even though EMS Manager is 10 years old and most of our customers are amazed by the benefits it provides, Web applications are still evolving rapidly. We’re very excited about this technology and the opportunity to help shape the future of web applications,” shares David Feyereisen, co-founder and CEO at Aladtec.

About Aladtec, Inc.Aladtec, Inc. is a proud provider of web-based software solutions for online employee scheduling and workforce management applications. The company’s flagship products, EMS Manager and FIRE Manager, are leaders in the public safety sector. Together with their newest product, Zanager, they serve nearly 900 EMS agencies, fire departments, police departments and other businesses. Over 50,000 employees use Aladtec’s online employee scheduling and workforce management products. Aladtec is headquartered just outside the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area in Hudson, WI. For more information, visit www.aladtec.com.